My run in with a bear

[walrus]

Not really a run in since I was in a van but I do these hiking groups a couple times a week or as often as I can. I am situated not too far from an area we call the Berkshires in a state over which is extremely rural. So although I work in a city I can hop in a van and within 20 minutes be at some very cool state parks with nice trails. I shit you not at several parks there are posting “be aware of bears” and instructions on what to do if you come across one. I think if you come across a mother with a cub your chances of survival aren’t good but if you come across an lone adult usually they give you a sniff or will do a false charge to show who is boss and wander off. I hope not to test these theories. I did come across a cub years ago, very cute little thing, you really want to pat one but no, you see a cub you turn and gtfo as mommy bear will tear you to pieces. Hopefully while you move quickly mommy isn’t on the trail ahead of you.

So anyway I was driving a van back from a hiking expedition, luckily I was driving slow, and a pretty good size brown bear crossed in front of our van. I was able to make a complete stop and was close enough to get a good look. Not full grown but you he was healthy and you could tell by those legs and paws he could do some damage. What amazed me is the way the thing navigated the guardrails on the side of the road. Effortlessly. Very agile beast. I used to think of bears as clumsy but seeing one move in person from about six feet gave me a different perspective. I won’t be doing fancy footwork to get around one. It was pretty cool. I don’t see bears often. I really enjoy seeing wildlife in its element. I had a turtle lay some eggs in my front yard 3 months ago. There is a stream about a half a mile, maybe less from me. After seeing it digging in my yard I learned they will travel a mile or more to bury the eggs and the little ones will climb out and make the journey to water. Usually within three months so they should be coming out this month but they can hibernate until spring. I don’t know how they survive underground during the winter.

So yeah very cool stuff. I took pictures of the turtle and the way it was digging it’s hole. I was power washing something which took my all day and the turtle burying her eggs took her all day but I would stop once in a while to observe it. I didn’t want to screw with it to much as I noticed if I got to close she would freeze and she was putting in a lot of hours, I would think that is when adult turtles are at there most vulnerable to some predators. I’m not exactly sure who eats turtles but we have bobcats and foxes in the area perhaps one of them would.

A couple months ago I had a bobcat sitting at my front door looking in. I went to the door thinking it was one of my cats but then saw the colors. When it turned to leave I saw the tail and knew it was a bobcat. They really are similar in size to house cats but much more muscular. Anyway those are my brushes with nature this year. I really did a lot of hiking the past three months it is very enjoyable. Found some great views and although I’m getting bummed the cold weather and winter is coming we will have that big splash of autumn and I’ve found some great sites. I wish it was easier to post pictures here so I could show you guys at least the turtle and some of the scenery.

Ok that went from wanting to tell you about my run in with the bear to a long winded babble.

[Master]

I think I could take on a bear. Was it big?

[X]

My uncle lives in very rural North Ontario. His neighbour (I say neighbour, but he lives about 3 miles away) was eaten by a bear last year.

They have these 'bear mats' on their porches, which are big squares of wood with nails in them. Nobody knows what happened here, but they just found a few bits of him and had to identify him by his DNA.

People are assuming that he had a heart attack or something, and that the bear was scavenging his dead body for carrion but nobody knows for sure

[walrus]

My uncle lives in very rural North Ontario. His neighbour (I say neighbour, but he lives about 3 miles away) was eaten by a bear last year.

They have these 'bear mats' on their porches, which are big squares of wood with nails in them. Nobody knows what happened here, but they just found a few bits of him and had to identify him by his DNA.

People are assuming that he had a heart attack or something, and that the bear was scavenging his dead body for carrion but nobody knows for sure

Frickin gruesome. I have seen bear Matt’s I know what you are talking about. Do you know what type of bear are in that area? Grizzlys are the ones that get really big as far as I know we don’t have them around here but we also didn’t have cougars until they were just recently spotted again.

[walrus]

I did a little research it seems the best way to fight a bear is with another bear.

[p4pking]

Brown bears vary in size more than any other type, grizzlys are a subspecies of them is all. Kodiaks are also and they get as big as polars. If this thing was really under 200 pounds it was likely very young or starving. I honestly didn't think there were many Brown bears in the states outside of Alaska, I take it you aren't in the same place you used to live Walrus?

[walrus]

I think I could take on a bear. Was it big?

Having had a 70lb dog I’ll bet this bear was around 160 or so. I could tell it wasn’t full grown but the size of its paws were quite amazing. I could see the tips of its claws. They didn’t look particularly sharp but I would think a good swipe would rip you open. Who knows master maybe you could take him but I don’t think you would come out unscathed. Brown bears don’t get as big as other types of bears but it was big enough that I’m very glad I was surrounded by metal and glass when I saw it